Page 8 of Marked by the Pack (Crooked Point #2)

Wednesday

Zoey

Otto put his hands on either side of me against the wall, caging me in. “Has anyone ever told you how sexy you are when you’re pissed off?” His gaze fell to my lips.

“I’m not upset.” But my heart felt weird in my chest. I wished I wasn’t upset. But his words had stung. Why couldn’t he date me? What was so wrong with…me?

“You just downed a whole glass of wine.”

“That had nothing to do with you. I’m just a fan of reds.”

“Mhm. It had nothing to do with the fact that I said I can’t date you?”

If he didn’t want to date me, why was he here?

Why had he sounded upset when it wasn’t just the two of us?

Why was he staring at me like that? And why was he not letting me move?

Nothing about what he said matched what he was doing.

“No. I’m a big girl. I don’t need to hear the ‘ It’s not you, it’s me’ speech.

Trust me, I know how great I am. So if you’ll excuse me. ”

I ducked out from beneath his arm. This time he didn’t stop me. My mind was spinning, and I wished I hadn’t just pounded so much wine. I needed to think straight. Seriously, what the hell was that? Telling me he couldn’t date me one minute and then looking like he wanted to devour me the next ?

Callum and Emma were sitting at the table waiting for us.

“Everything good?” Emma asked.

“Yeah.” I filled the rest of the wine glasses on the table.

Otto pulled my seat out for me.

So now you’re polite? Asshole. I unceremoniously plopped down into my chair. I cleared my throat and lifted my glass. “Here’s to…new friends.” I emphasized the word friends and tapped my glass against Otto’s first.

He raised his eyebrow at me. His hazel eyes would have been distracting if I wasn’t pissed off at him. I turned away from him and tapped my glass with Callum’s.

Callum gave me a polite nod.

“So…” I said, my voice trailing off. “Should we just address the elephant in the room?”

“The fact that you invited Callum to a dinner party even though he doesn’t eat normal food?” Otto asked. “You know…because he’s a vampire?”

The lights dimmed for just a moment. Had Grudge messed up something with the wiring last night somehow? I ignored the lights and glared at Otto. “No. I’m actually talking about your secret.”

“What?”

“Emma and Callum both know it, but they refuse to tell me. They said I just needed to ask you myself. So, I’m asking. What is this crazy secret that makes you so undatable?”

“Zoey…” Emma said.

Otto laughed. “I’m not undatable. ”

Oh, I’m the only undatable one? Great. I rolled my eyes. “Just tell me.”

Otto pressed his lips together.

I turned to Emma and Callum. “Spill it.”

“I can’t,” Emma said. “I’ve told you several times that I can’t. And Otto can’t tell you either.”

Yeah, that excuse was getting old. And it made zero sense. “Callum? How about you? Can you tell me the big bad secret?”

Callum glanced at Otto and then back at me. “I already told you he was a thief. Isn’t that bad enough?”

“ I’m a thief?” Otto said. “And what does that make you ?”

“I didn’t steal anything from you…”

“Great,” I said, cutting them off. “I’ve already heard this bit. Otto stole a watch. Or Callum stole a watch. Callum’s a vampire so you hate him even more. Whatever. Get over it.”

Everyone just stared at me like I was the one being poorly behaved at the table.

The lights flickered a few times. They seemed to be flickering whenever I mentioned vampires. Was Grudge watching me right now? Damn it, Grudge. I couldn’t wait to talk to him about that later tonight. But right now I wanted freaking answers. “So no one’s going to tell me the secret?”

Crickets. The lights dimmed again.

“What’s going on with your lights?” Callum asked.

“I’m having…wiring problems.” Cut it out, Grudge.

“Do you want me to check it out?”

So now you’re being helpful? “No, I’ve got it covered. I’m going to go check on dinner.” I excused myself and practically ran into the kitchen. Tonight was officially a disaster. I opened up the oven. At least my lasagna looked good. I grabbed some potholders and pulled it out.

“I really am sorry,” Emma said from behind me. “I want to tell you the secret. I do. But…I can’t. And as weird as it sounds, Otto really can’t either. He just has to show you.”

I put the lasagna on the stove and sighed. “Well, Otto isn’t going to be showing me anything.”

“What does that mean?”

“He thinks I’m the undatable one. Me. Even though he’s a thief with secrets even worse than that.” I rolled my eyes.

“Did he say that?”

“I mean, he didn’t rub it in like that. But yes. He said he can’t date me. So this night is pointless. All I’ve accomplished is upsetting Callum by inviting Otto.” I was practically begging for my blood to be sucked.

“I’m sorry, Zoey. I know you liked him.”

I wanted to laugh and play it off. But I did like Otto.

I’d always been attracted to him. And then when I ran into him today…

I shook away the thought. But it was just replaced by how safe I’d felt when he’d held my hand.

Stop it. I didn’t need a real life boyfriend. I had plenty of online boyfriends.

I just had to get through this dinner from hell and then I could spend the rest of the night being wanted. “Let’s just get this over with.” I grabbed the lasagna and carried it out into the dining room.

Callum and Otto were sitting there silently. At least they weren’t arguing.

“Dinner is served.” I dropped the pan ungracefully onto the table. And then I helped myself to a heaping serving. It wasn’t like anyone here cared about my etiquette. “Help yourselves,” I said with my mouth full.

“So, Otto,” Emma said as she spooned out a normal serving for Otto and then herself. “How was work?”

“Good,” Otto said. “Although, Bennett wasn’t in a great mood. Since, you know, you dumped him and everything.”

Yup, this was the most awkward dinner in the history of dinners.

“Oh,” Emma said. “I’m sorry.” She took a bite of her lasagna and didn’t immediately kill over from the garlic I’d accidentally put in it.

Well, at least she wasn’t a vampire. One positive note for this evening.

Otto laughed. “It’s fine. Bennett’s a big boy. He didn’t need the whole ‘ It’s not you, it’s me ’ speech. He’ll get over it.” Otto practically repeated back what I’d said to him earlier.

I stared at him.

And then he proceeded to put his hand on my thigh.

What is happening right now? I swallowed down the huge bite in my mouth. I was just about to move my thigh away from him, when he started trailing his fingers higher.

His hand was so warm, like it was lighting a trail of fire up my thigh. He kept going, pushing up the skirt of my dress.

I tried to focus. “So now that Emma’s staying in Crooked Point, I know she’ll need lots of work. I asked her to take some photos for me.” Otto’s hand kept inching higher .

“For your fitness instructor business?” Callum asked. “Were you thinking about making a website?”

“Something like that.”

“Yeah, I’m not doing that,” Emma said. “I have a full time gig. With this guy.” She smiled up at him.

Callum smiled down at her. “I’ll definitely be keeping her busy.”

They were adorable.

Otto cleared his throat. “So what’s it like dating Ferris wheel girl?”

“Excuse me?” Callum said.

Otto laughed. “You haven’t heard people saying that around town? You know…because Emma and Bennett got busy up in the Ferris wheel during the Fall Festival. From what I heard, it was really hot.”

Emma’s face was bright red. And Callum was staring daggers at Otto.

I would have told Otto to stop poking Callum. But I was a little distracted by Otto’s fingers. His index finger slid along the side of my thong, teasing me. I really wished he would poke me instead.

God, what was I doing? Otto just told me he didn’t want to date me. And I was annoyed that he just assumed that I was the type of girl that wanted this instead of a relationship. He didn’t know anything about me. I pressed my thighs together.

He massaged my thigh where I’d captured his hand. My body immediately relaxed. He kept massaging me. And honestly, all I could think about was that if his hands were this good at massaging…they were probably pretty good at something else.

Otto inched his hand higher, still massaging me. He stopped only a few inches from where I needed him. He pushed my thighs back apart. And I let him. Maybe I was exactly the kind of girl he assumed I was.

I really should have pushed him away. But it had actually been a little while since I’d been touched by someone else’s fingers. And I’d forgotten how good that felt. And his hands were so warm. And so big…

“If I were you, I’d be very careful about the next words out of your mouth,” Callum said.

“Oh, trust me. I’m not hitting on your girlfriend. Zoey has my undivided attention.” Otto yanked my thong to the side.

My chair scooted forward, scratching against the floor.

And then Otto sunk two fingers deep inside of me.

Oh God.

“Right, Zoey?” he said.

“Mhm.” I meant to say it normally. But I was pretty sure that first ‘m’ came out more as a ‘mmmm.’

“Well, what you probably didn’t hear about that story was that Emma’s eyes were on me at the top of the Ferris wheel,” Callum said.

“Were they?” Otto asked. “Huh.” He turned to me. “That’s an important detail, don’t you think?” He circled his thumb around my clit. “To look at the man you want when you come?”

I nodded, instead of trying to say anything normally. His fingers felt so fucking good.

Emma cleared her throat. “Can we maybe not talk about the most humiliating moment of my life?”

Otto laughed. “And why was that humiliating?”

“Because people saw me. Clearly.”

“And here I was thinking you liked an audience? ”

“No.” Emma’s face had to be scarlet. “Definitely not.”

“What about you, Zoey?” Otto turned to me with his cocky smile. “Do you mind an audience? Because I think it’s kind of hot.”

Why did he keep talking to me when he… I slammed my hand down on the table. “Yes!” God, just like that. I was so close…

I could feel everyone’s eyes on me.

“Yes what?” Otto asked. He pressed his fingers deep inside of me and circled my clit faster.

Part of me wanted to say, ‘yes, sir.’ I shook the thought away. “I think it’s hot,” I said. I was seconds away from coming around his fingers.

He smiled. “Yeah, I thought so.” He pulled his fingers out of me.

Wait. I scooted forward in my chair. I’d been so close. Why had he stopped? I was pretty sure my face was as red as Emma’s had been a moment ago.

“Um…I’m going to go grab dessert.” Even though I was the only one that had scarfed down my whole meal. I just needed a second to calm down. I ran out of the dining room and put my hands on the kitchen island. I took a deep breath.

Why had he done that and then stopped? Was he just trying to prove that I wasn’t the kind of girl someone dated? My heart felt funny in my chest.

“Now, where were we?” Otto asked.

I tried to spin around, but he’d caged me in against the island. My back to his front. “What are you doing?”

“Just because I don’t mind an audience doesn’t mean I always want it.” His fingers trailed back up my thigh .

“I don’t mean that.” Well, I was kind of wondering about that. “Seriously, what are you doing?”

He pushed my thong back to the side, slipping his fingers back inside of me. “What do you think I’m doing? I’m fucking you with my fingers, Zoey.”

I didn’t mean that either! But… God.

“Tell me what you want.” His breath was hot against my ear.

He wanted me to tell him what I wanted? No one had ever asked me what I wanted before. I was paid to give men what they wanted. Not the other way around.

“Slower?” he asked, his fingers slowing down to a torturous pace.

“Faster,” I moaned.

He kissed the side of my neck and moved his fingers faster. “Like that?”

“Harder.”

He groaned as his fingers slammed into me.

And I knew he was loving this as much as me, because I could feel his erection pressing against the small of my back.

I wasn’t sure if the lights were flickering again or if I was just starting to see stars. “Put your thumb back on my clit. Yes,” I moaned when he started circling it. I let my head roll back on his shoulder.

He circled his thumb faster as he kissed down the side of my neck and down my shoulder.

And I came, embarrassingly fast. With my skirt bunched around my waist in the middle of my kitchen. With a guy who 100% did not want to date me. What is wrong with me? I pushed his hand away from me.

He let me turn around and glare at him.

“You really are sexy when you’re pissed off. ”

“Otto, what the hell?”

He raised his eyebrow at me. “What?” He put his fingers in his mouth, licking my juices off of them.

Jesus.

“I’m pretty sure you enjoyed every second of that.”

“No. I mean, yes. No! Seriously, what the hell was that? You literally just told me you can’t date me.”

“Yeah, but I really like doing things I’m not supposed to.” He smiled out of the corner of his mouth. “Don’t you?”

I swallowed hard.

“I have to go,” Otto said. “Because I really can’t stand another second of being in a room with that guy.

Trust me. But how about you come over for dinner tomorrow night at my place?

It can be just the two of us. No surprise guests.

After all…we’re already dating, right? It’s about time you saw my place. ”

I was still confused. So…he did want to date me? Or…he didn’t? I couldn’t tell when he was joking around or not. But I found myself nodding anyway. I wanted more of whatever that was.

“Good. I’ll text you. See you tomorrow, Zoey.”

The lights dimmed again as he walked out of the kitchen. I stared up at the ceiling. What the fuck is going on?